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Introducing the Flurry Analytics SDK for BlackBerry 10http://devblog.blackberry.com/2013/05/flurry-analytics-blackberry-10/
http://devblog.blackberry.com/2013/05/flurry-analytics-blackberry-10/#commentsTue, 14 May 2013 18:39:26 +0000http://devblog.blackberry.com/?p=14955/ Read More]]>Today I am extremely excited to be able to announce the release of the Flurry Analytics SDK for BlackBerry 10! I have been working with Flurry for a couple months behind the scenes to help get this SDK created, tested, and finally available for you to download and integrate into your Cascades or Native applications. In just a few minutes of creating your account with Flurry and downloading the SDK, you can have the service integrated into an app and begin logging events to the Flurry Dashboard.

For anyone new to analytics let me explain why I am so excited and why you should be as well. Analytics gives you the ability to know who is using your application as well as how they are using it. Sounds easy enough right? The Flurry SDK integrates with your application and allows it to log “events” when they occur. A simple example would be logging an event where a button is clicked. That data is recorded and then sent up to the dashboard where patterns start to emerge on how many people are clicking that button, how they got to it, and what users do after it gets pressed.

Analytics helps by telling you two very important pieces of information:

Who is using your application?

The Flurry Analytics service will report the following information about the user/user’s device by default:

Locale set on the device

Time Zone

Approximate location

Device name (ex “BlackBerry Z10”)

Device OS version

Carrier

And can also be configured by you to report:

The version of the app being used

The user’s geolocation (with permission from the user)

The user’s gender (if supplied by the user)

The user’s age (if supplied by the user)

The user ID (if used by your application)

This will let you know where your application is being used, as well as provide you an idea for the type of people that are using it. This in turn gives you the ability to tailor content to various regions and locales based on demand, as well as determine which device models you may want to focus on in the future.

How are people using your application?

Of course after you know who is using your application you will definitely want to know how they are using it. Flurry lets you log events that occur within your application, letting you map out every step the user takes. This is helpful so you can see trends for where they may be getting stuck, areas for improvement, and features that are being used more than expected and can be prioritized for enhancement in future releases. This information is invaluable for making informed decision on where to take the direction of your application.

From the aspect of monetization, knowing user patterns can help you understand what will make your application and possibly digital goods for sale, more attractive/valuable to the end user. Events would also allow you to track the success of promotions within your application. If you happen to sell a limited edition digital good, or offer to unlock the premium features of the app at a reduced price, you have the ability to track the success of the promotion with a relatively short turnaround.

The idea of tracking everything your users do may sound like a scary concept, however all data is made anonymous by the service meaning there is no way of tracking specific actions back to one device/user. Keeping the data anonymous keeps users from compromising their privacy while still maintaining the integrity of the data.

If you’re ready to add some analytics to your application then getting started is easy. Simply go over to the Flurry home page and create an account. Then create an application to get the analytics SDK for BlackBerry 10.

I’ve also whipped up a sample app that you can take a look at to get a feel for the APIs that can be downloaded from the Community Samples Repo on GitHub.

JAM68 – Flurry Mobile Analytics on BlackBerry 10!!

If you’re lucky enough to be at BlackBerry Jam Americas this week, you can attend JAM68 where Anthony Watkins and Rich Brett from Flurry will be presenting with me on how to integrate the Analytics SDK into your BlackBerry applications. For those unable to make it, the recording should be posted a few days following the session and you can always send me a message on Twitter with your questions/comments: @garettBeuk

For more information you can also refer to our Analytics page on the forums: